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A review by sempiterne
This Fatal Kiss by Alicia Jasinska
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I honestly wasn't expecting to really love this book but it completly surprised me!
I thought the tone would be a lot more serious but it ended up being very funny, I read it in one afternoon and had a great time.
This Fatal Kiss is about a slavic water nymph called Gisela who makes a deal with a stuffy, uptight exorcist (who hates her) to help her kiss her crush so that she can become human again and return to her family. The only problem, her crush seems more interested in hanging out with both of them, together, then kissing Gisela and he might even be hiding a secret of his own.
This was honestly such a great time, I haven't read a lot of cozy fantasy but it's starting to become one of my favourite genres.
I really loved the dynamic between all the characters (especially Gisela and Kazik), their banter literally had me laughing out loud. I also really loved the magic system/worldbuilding, the mix of religion and magic is one of my favourite themes in books and I enjoy magical/inhuman people who don't act human and have their own sort of twisted morals.
The book felt well plotted, there was never any time that I was bored by a lack of action/plot and the progression of the relationships felt natural. I wasn't sure at first if it was going to be polyamorus because the blurb was a little vague and it kind of had love triangle vibes with the many jealous comments, but it pulled through in the end and their relationship was very cute.
The final chapters of the book had quite a bit of action, though the stakes didn't feel very high (which I prefer in cozy fantasy) but the actual ending was kind of vague and felt slightly unfinished. I hope this means there will be a sequel, but there weren't any loose ends to tie up so it could go either way.
I definitely recommend this book if you like more relaxed fantasy (it felt a little bit like romantasy, but with more plot) and cute, realistic relationships between awkward teens (+ some sweet found family between dead nymphs and their weird pseudo-dad goblin).
Thank you to Peachtree Teen and Netgalley for an arc!
I thought the tone would be a lot more serious but it ended up being very funny, I read it in one afternoon and had a great time.
This Fatal Kiss is about a slavic water nymph called Gisela who makes a deal with a stuffy, uptight exorcist (who hates her) to help her kiss her crush so that she can become human again and return to her family. The only problem, her crush seems more interested in hanging out with both of them, together, then kissing Gisela and he might even be hiding a secret of his own.
This was honestly such a great time, I haven't read a lot of cozy fantasy but it's starting to become one of my favourite genres.
I really loved the dynamic between all the characters (especially Gisela and Kazik), their banter literally had me laughing out loud. I also really loved the magic system/worldbuilding, the mix of religion and magic is one of my favourite themes in books and I enjoy magical/inhuman people who don't act human and have their own sort of twisted morals.
The book felt well plotted, there was never any time that I was bored by a lack of action/plot and the progression of the relationships felt natural. I wasn't sure at first if it was going to be polyamorus because the blurb was a little vague and it kind of had love triangle vibes with the many jealous comments, but it pulled through in the end and their relationship was very cute.
The final chapters of the book had quite a bit of action, though the stakes didn't feel very high (which I prefer in cozy fantasy) but the actual ending was kind of vague and felt slightly unfinished. I hope this means there will be a sequel, but there weren't any loose ends to tie up so it could go either way.
I definitely recommend this book if you like more relaxed fantasy (it felt a little bit like romantasy, but with more plot) and cute, realistic relationships between awkward teens (+ some sweet found family between dead nymphs and their weird pseudo-dad goblin).
Thank you to Peachtree Teen and Netgalley for an arc!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide